When did Laila Ali retire from professional boxing? Claressa Shields raises $15M to bring the former back to the ring

Laila Ali, who boxed professionally from 1999 until her retirement in 2007, may be eyeing a return to the ring. On July 18, American boxing champion and former MMA fighter Claressa Shields revealed in a video shared with TMZ Sports that she has raised $15 million to potentially lure Ali out of retirement.

This comes after Ali last month responded to rumors that she's prepared to fight Shields. Laila, while responding to a FightHype's question about the rumors, said that she would consider coming out of retirement to fight Shields, if a prize money of $15-$20 million was met.

"(U)nless somebody has $15-$20 million, don't even call me about this. Unless somebody calls me and says they have it, we're not going to have conversation. I'm not trying to come back and fight, but if someone offered that kind of money, I would actually have to think about it."

She added before walking away,

"Do I look like I could fight again? I think so too."

In the recent video, Claressa Shields revealed that the $15 million offer is backed by Ruben Branson’s Wynn Records. Branson appeared alongside Shields in the clip, joined by her boyfriend Papoose—who also serves as Wynn’s Head of Hip-Hop—and her longtime manager, Mark Taffett. Branson confirmed that the funding is in place and the offer is official.

"Let's make a fight between me and you," says Claressa Shields to Laila Ali

Claressa Shields is trying to bring professional boxer Laila Ali back from retirement to the ring. In a recent video shared with TMZ Sports, Claressa said that she has the funding to make a fight between the two happen.

"Laila, I'm here with my team. I got some great news for you. We got the $15 million! Let's make a fight between me and you. The best versues the best. The great versus the greats. The GWOAT versus Muhammad Ali's daughter, Laila Ali. Let's make it happen."

Laila Ali is a boxing legend, Muhammad Ali's daughter, who has also made a career in film and television post-retirement. Shields went on to add,

"We got the $15 million. We got the venue, and we got the dates. Now all we need is Laila Ali. Is you gonna make the fight happen or what? You asked for the $15 million and we delivered it."

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A fight between Ali and Shields has been anticipated for a while, after Ali, in a 2019 radio interview, claimed that Shields couldn't beat her. In response, Shields said Ali never fought real competition. Ali is yet to respond to the offer.

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